Fall Without Design
by Will Peterson
Summary: Greninja knows that romance between humans and Pokemon is completely taboo, but falling in love with his trainer was something he had no control over.
1. Chapter 1

_About seven months ago, I visited the more graphic corner of the Internet and stumbled upon a painting that depicted Calem (the rival from X and Y) having sex with his Greninja on a forest floor. The style and coloring job were gorgeous and the image struck a chord with me. Thank you to the artist whose work inspired me to write this story. And thank you, reader, for coming here. I hope so much that you like what I have to offer._

_This work takes place during the storyline of X and Y. There will be 10 chapters._

**Chapter 1**

Greninja wakes up. The last thing he remembers before fainting is taking a Leaf Blade from Serena's Gogoat. Did Calem lose the battle at that point? Or did he still have other Pokemon to use? Greninja doesn't know if his trainer prevailed. Probably not, since Calem never beat Serena before, but Greninja likes to hope.

He is inside his Poke Ball right now. He feels good. Calem must have gone to a Pokemon Center and healed the team. Greninja wants to see him. He wants to know the outcome of the match, but mostly just wants to see him. The Pokemon rests and waits to be called out. He's stuck inside his red-and-white case until then.

When the time finally comes, the three of them – Greninja, Meowstic, and Absol – are brought out together. Greninja is surprised to find that they're surrounded by thick trees and dark grass growing out of muddy patches. It looks like they're somewhere on Route 14, the area where Calem battled Serena earlier. Did their trainer really walk to Laverre City, heal his Pokemon at the Center, and then walk all the way back?

Calem is sitting on the ground before them. His face is blank in a controlled way. In front of him are three dishes filled with food. He pushes these toward his Pokemon and tells them in a monotone to eat.

"First of all," Calem says once they've started, "I want you guys to know that you shouldn't feel bad about losing to Serena again."

So they lost.

"I think it's good for us to have a tough rival like her. If we won all the time, we'd have no motivation to keep getting stronger." Abruptly Calem stands up. "That's . . . that's all I had to say, actually. I'm going to leave for a bit. Just stay here and eat dinner. I'll be back soon." Without looking at them, he walks away hastily, and soon he's disappeared within the darkness of the dense forest.

The Pokemon exchange glances with each other. "Wait a minute," Absol says. "Why did he bring us out of our Poke Balls if he was just going to ditch us immediately?"

"I don't think he was planning to ditch us," Meowstic remarks. "I think he was planning to stay here, but then all of a sudden he realized he can't bear to look at us right now. He was going to lose his composure in front of us if he stayed any longer."

"Wow, do you think he's that upset?"

"I guess so. Of course, there's no way he'll ever let us see that."

Greninja stands up. "I'm going to find him."

"Don't," Meowstic says in a warning tone. "He went away for a reason."

"He can take care of himself," Absol adds.

"I'm going anyway. If he tells me to come back here, I will, but I want to check on him first."

Meowstic sighs. "Well, suit yourself."

Greninja goes into the forest and searches. The sky is darkening with night's approach. The trees are packed in such a way that they create twisted paths. Even though he moves a lot faster than a human on foot, it takes him a startlingly long time to find his trainer.

He finds him alone in a small clearing. Calem is sitting on a tree stump, his elbows on his knees and his chin in his hands. He looks somber. Out of habit, Greninja's approach is dead silent, which he doesn't even realize until he's right next to Calem and his trainer flinches with surprise.

Greninja backs up a little and sits down. The ground is muddy, but he doesn't mind that. He locks eyes with Calem, who grimaces and says, "I'm embarrassed you caught me like this. I didn't think you would follow me."

He falls silent, as if waiting for a response. Greninja always thought it was silly when Calem did that. As a human, there is no way for him to understand the speech of Pokemon. It's useless for them to speak to him, which is why Greninja seldom bothers with it.

As expected, once Greninja is quiet for long enough, Calem starts to talk again on his own. "I actually had more I was planning to tell you guys," he says. "I was going to say that it's my fault if I can't bring out the potential of my Pokemon, and that's the reason why you shouldn't feel bad about losing. That's what being a good trainer is about: when you win, the glory belongs to the Pokemon. When you lose, the blame belongs to the trainer. I was going to tell you that, but I had to leave because . . . Well, anyway, you've heard it now."

Again he becomes silent. His gaze is still fixed on his Pokemon's face. Greninja didn't think of this before, but it occurs to him now that he and Calem are alone. Aside from the plants, he can't sense another living being anywhere near them. Suddenly everything around him appears different. The whole scenery melts into a dream. Meanwhile the human in front of him, the human he's long felt so attracted to, looks clearer than ever.

"Greninja," his trainer says softly. "Why did you come here anyway?"

He hates when Calem asks questions like this, questions that can't be answered with a nod or a shake of his head. They only remind him of how he can't speak.

For a long time now, he's wanted to try communicating with Calem in a different way.

He warns himself to be cautious. Slowly he takes a step forward. When Calem doesn't react and the world doesn't collapse, he takes another step. Calem is looking at him quizzically. Greninja can't remember ever being this nervous. He leans forward and presses his mouth against Calem's. Or at least, he _tries_ to, but he can't actually do it because his giant tongue is in the way.

Calem leans back slightly. "What are you doing?"

In his mind, Greninja is kicking himself. He attempted a kiss because he knows that's what humans do, but he isn't a human. He is a Pokemon that wasn't built for kissing. He considers giving up, but then his hand impulsively grabs the zipper of Calem's jacket and tugs down on it. Greninja is not planning to go too far; he just wants to make his feelings clear. But he can't even do that, because like all the members of his species, his skin is perpetually slimy. He can't get a grip on the zipper, nor can he pull it down an inch.

Nevertheless, at that point Calem realizes what his intentions are. He bats the Pokemon's hand away. "What are you doing?" Calem snaps, and this time it's not so much a question as an accusation. Greninja freezes. He thought he was nervous before, but now he's terrified.

"Are you crazy?" his trainer demands. Greninja doesn't know if he should answer yes or no or nothing at all. Then Calem puts his head in his hands and groans. "I knew I shouldn't have kissed you when you were a Froakie. I think I messed you up. Listen, I'm not your . . . mate . . . if that's what you're thinking."

Greninja has no idea what Calem's talking about. Then he remembers: there was a movie in which a human princess kissed a Froakie and magically turned him into a human prince. Calem and his friends once talked about this movie, and their discussion had led to Calem jokingly kissing his then-Froakie to see if he'd transform into a prince. (He didn't.) Greninja had practically forgotten about that event. It has nothing to do with the way he feels now.

He thinks about the reason he tried to kiss Calem – all of their shared travels and experiences and all of his unshared nights of lovesick loneliness that led him to where he is now. Rejection stings like poison, yet he can't resist bringing it upon himself once again. He reaches out and touches Calem's hair as gently as he can. The contact lasts only a moment before Calem shakes him off and stands up. "Stop," he commands. "You know you can't do this."

Greninja nods, unsurprised but miserable.

For a second, Calem's face softens with sympathy, but in the next it becomes cool again. He turns away from the Pokemon. "Pull yourself together," he mutters, "and c'mon. We're going back to rejoin the others."

Greninja lets him walk several steps ahead before starting to follow him from a distance.


	2. Chapter 2

_I need to stop mistakenly picturing Calem with a hat while I'm working on this. He's the rival in this story, not the player character, so he doesn't have a hat. Speaking of which, why do the PCs wear sunglasses on their hats? I like Calem and Serena's designs overall, but that one detail has always seemed silly to me. Glasses are meant to be worn on your face._

**Chapter 2**

In the following days, Greninja is imprisoned inside his Poke Ball. He guesses Calem is traveling, but he can't tell where they're going. He loses track of the hours. They all blend together and make time into a slow-moving mush.

Once, while sleeping, he has a dream in which he transforms into a human. At first he's glad, since he thinks he and Calem can now be together. But when Calem sees him in his new human form, he rejects him again.

"This just isn't who you are," the dream-Calem tells him.

When he wakes up, he feels distraught, as if the events of his dream had actually happened. He's both intrigued and disturbed by the strength of his reaction. He passes time by thinking up alternate endings for the dream – endings where Calem accepts him and they live happily ever after, endings where Calem rejects him and he spends the rest of his life in misery. Before long he starts coming up with not just new endings but new beginnings, and later new stories altogether. Only two commonalities connect all these scenarios: they all center on Calem, and they all make Greninja so absurdly emotional that he worries he's going insane.

How long has it been since the night he revealed his affections? It's probably been no more than a week, but he feels like ages have passed. Even though his ball is comfortable, currently it's more of a gilded cage than a home. He's never been locked up for this long before. It isn't necessary for Pokemon to be fed every day if they're kept suspended within their Poke Balls, but Calem usually had a tendency of doing so anyway. Sometimes he would bring out one of his Pokemon just to walk with him as they journeyed through Kalos.

Not so, at the moment. It occurs to Greninja over and over that he wants to see Calem. He doesn't even care if he gets yelled at again. He just wants to see him. At one point, he's stricken with paranoia and imagines that Calem has abandoned him. His Poke Ball is not in his trainer's pocket – it's buried underground, sunken underwater, sitting in a trash can, simply dropped on the side of a road somewhere. The logical part of his brain reminds him that Calem would never discard his first Pokemon. And even if he did, he wouldn't just toss away the Poke Ball like a piece of junk. He'd take the time to release him properly, and Greninja would know if that happened. Still, after having those fearful thoughts, it's a while before he can calm down.

Times goes on. His dreams become increasingly ridiculous, and they continue to pull his emotions far more than they should. But he can't help it. When there is nothing to do, the only thing left is to feel.

**(Segment Break)**

It's a shock when he's called out of his Poke Ball. The air is chilly and the ground is dusted with powdery snow. He shivers. His head is still filled with the haze of his dreams. He glances around and sees Absol at his side. Calem is standing a few meters behind them. In front of them are three unfamiliar faces: a Furfrou and a Weavile standing side-by-side, along with a human girl standing a ways behind the pair. Greninja is so disoriented from suddenly being outside again that it takes a few moments for him to realize what's going on. Then it clicks: _Oh. Battle._

His focus returns quickly once they start. Fighting is so familiar to him. He slips back into it like he never left. As he takes orders, evades attacks, and lands hits on the opponents, he starts to feel as if that humiliating night with Calem never happened. Right now, everything is normal.

They win easily. The opposing trainer doesn't seem upset by her loss. In fact, she's excited – she's bouncing on her feet where she stands. As soon as she's withdrawn her defeated Pokemon, she runs across the battlefield, right past Greninja and Absol, to get to Calem. "Wow, that was so cool!" she exclaims, grabbing his hands and shaking them vigorously. There are stars in her eyes. "Of course, it's nothing less than I expected, what with your parents being the famous trainers they are. I knew you would be amazingly strong too. Thank you so much for battling with me. I really learned a lot from –"

She keeps chattering, but Greninja doesn't hear any more of what she says because Absol pokes him then. "Hey, Greninja," Absol says pleasantly. "How's it going? I haven't seen you in such a while. Calem seems to be avoiding you for some reason. Is he mad at you? Did you lose against a Caterpie or something?"

Greninja resists the urge to tense up. He makes himself sound casual: "What? No, of course not. Calem hasn't been avoiding me at all. You must be imagining things." He pauses, and then cautiously adds, "By the way, do you know where we are right now?"

"Somewhere around Dendemille, I think. We've been traveling in a sort of northeastern direction lately, and the snow here kind of settles it in my belief. Dendemille is the name of a town."

"Yeah, I can tell it's the name of a town . . ." He trails off. He can't remember what else he was about to say, because he's noticed that the girl trainer isn't just chatting with Calem. She's totally flirting with him.

Absol catches the direction of his gaze. "If you're cold, you can just go up to him and ask to be recalled. I doubt he'll mind being interrupted."

"I'm not that cold . . ." Greninja replies absentmindedly, but then he realizes he needs an excuse for why he's staring at their trainer. So he remarks, "Calem looks pretty uncomfortable talking to that girl, doesn't he? You would think he'd be used to people like her."

"Nah, his parents are the famous ones," Absol says. "Our young man has a long way to go if he wants to create his own reputation."

Calem's voice breaks in then, slightly louder than before. "Let me withdraw my Pokemon, okay?" he says to the girl. "I bet they're freezing out here."

Seconds later, Greninja is back inside his ball. His heart sinks into a pool of despair. He doesn't know what he means to Calem anymore. Are they still companions or has he fallen from grace? Did he really do something so unforgivable that he needs to be constantly contained?

He doesn't know how long it'll be until he's let outside again. He returns to his daydreams, but they're all lined with darkness. The girl they fought today may not have captured Calem's affections, but one day somebody would, and that person would be human and warm-blooded and able to speak to him. Greninja, on the other hand, would forever be an unintelligible, battling servant.


	3. Chapter 3

_I know there are tons of hotels in Kalos but I don't see a young guy, like Calem, as being able to regularly afford them. They sleep at Pokemon Centers in the anime sometimes, if I recall correctly._

**Chapter 3**

Every day that passes serves to reconfirm to Greninja that his relationship with Calem is ruined. It's hard for him to believe he used to entertain such wild hopes for the future, when all he wants now is to return to the past, back when he and Calem could view each other as a normal trainer and Pokemon. These days Calem rarely even glances at him, as if Greninja has a terrible disease that can spread through eye contact.

Greninja decides that if he must spend his life as a battle pet, he might as well aim to be the best one there is. That is what he thinks about when he's sent out of his ball and his feet land on the paved stone street of an unfamiliar city. The instant he spots Serena and her Heliolisk standing ahead, he knows they're in for a brutal fight.

He looks over his shoulder at the sound of Calem's voice. For once, his trainer is actually meeting his gaze. "I'm counting on you, Greninja," he says. "You're the last Pokemon on our team."

The words set fire to Greninja's spirit. Even though it isn't true, he tells himself that he will win his trainer's affections if he wins this match against Serena. The thought motivates him. He faces his opponents feeling readier than ever.

Heliolisk smiles at him and extends one of her thin yellow arms to her right. "Look," she says.

Greninja looks in the direction she's pointing. His jaw drops. It's in the distance, but it's huge enough that he can see the details clearly: a jewel perched at the edge of the city, bright pink and clear and throwing a dazzling array of lights off its many facets. It radiates just like the glowing orange sun that is beginning to set behind it.

"That's the Anistar sundial," Heliolisk tells him. Her smile has turned into a smirk. "It's beautiful, isn't it? I figured I'd be nice and let you get a glimpse of it before I knock you unconscious."

"I'm not going to lose!" Greninja replies, whipping back around to face her. "I don't fight only for myself, you know. I fight for my trainer and for my team."

She's unimpressed. "We all do."

_But you don't know, _he thinks, _how much my trainer means to me._

Their trainers give their first commands and a flurry of movement ensues. He's struck by how fast Heliolisk is; he rarely finds a foe who presses him for speed. The two Pokemon dance all around each other like moving mirror images, both trying to attack, neither standing still long enough to be hit. He tries to shut off his mind and rely solely on instinct. He can tell he doesn't have the time to think.

As the battle goes on, their attacks start to land closer to each other. At one point, Heliolisk manages to get so near that she almost touches him, and during that one instant he can feel her determination burning as strongly as his own. Sparks crackle on the ground and chase his feet as he runs from her lightning attack. Then he turns and launches a barrage of Water Shuriken that she narrowly ducks. Someone is going down soon.

Finally, she gains the upper hand. He sees her attack coming but reacts a split second too late. He's already being electrocuted by the time Calem shouts, "Watch out!"

Greninja can deal out damage in spades, but he's never been good at receiving it. Besides, this was definitely the strongest Thunderbolt he'd ever experienced. With that one attack, he collapses facedown. Pain paralyzes him.

Calem sighs heavily. "My Pokemon are so much stronger than last time, but you win again, Serena. Why am I still playing catch-up to you?"

"Wait, Calem! Don't withdraw your Pokemon yet. Look at him!"

Greninja is twitching just enough to let them know he's still conscious. Bit by bit, he manages to get onto his knees, and then to his feet, nearly falling a few times in the process. The onlookers watch his progress with patience. Serena and Heliolisk grin at him when he finally stands up, dizzy but standing nonetheless. He smiles back – an acknowledgement between worthy opponents. Excitement and agony course through his body in equal measure. He knows he's going to lose, but he refuses to let it happen until he's fought with everything he's got.

When he glances behind him, he doesn't understand why Calem looks stricken. Is he just really surprised? No, there's more to his face than that, but there's no telling exactly what – he looks away from Greninja and says, "Well, uh, if you're still . . . if you're still up to it . . ."

He doesn't bother giving a command. He just says "go." Greninja takes off. He gives the fight an earnest attempt, even though his movements are much slower than before. As expected, Heliolisk easily lands another hit on him, and this one makes him faint at once.

**(Segment Break)**

Later, he regains consciousness inside his Poke Ball, healed by the machine of a Pokemon Center. The rest of the team must be healed too. All is well. He figures it's nighttime now, so he closes his eyes to sleep.

Minutes later, he's suddenly called out. The carpet under his body is uncomfortable. He opens his eyes.

"Sorry," Calem says. "Did I wake you up?"

Greninja sits up and shakes his head in response. They are inside the local Pokemon Center, in a room Calem must have rented for the night. Outside the thinly-curtained window, the sky is dark. The room is lit only by a pint-size lamp atop the bedside table.

Calem is sitting on the floor, his back against the side of the bed. "Can we talk a little?" he asks. Greninja nods. "I'm impressed by you. Well, I'm impressed _now_, anyway. At the time when you stood up again, you had me torn. We were clearly going to lose and I didn't want to let you get hurt more, but I saw in your eyes how much you wanted to keep fighting."

The space between the bed and the wall is very small in this cramped room. Calem is sitting with his legs drawn up, arms resting on his knees. Greninja thinks to himself that if he were to sit in that same humanoid fashion, their feet would interlock.

He's shaken out of this reverie when Calem remarks, "Did you notice Serena's team changes every time we battle her? Delphox is the only one who stays with her consistently. Otherwise, her party is always rotating. Yet every one of her Pokemon can put up a tough fight. She pretty much confirms what I said before. The trainer is the one responsible for bringing out the best of their Pokemon – or failing to do so. In short, don't feel bad about losing, okay?"

Greninja gestures inquisitively toward Calem.

"I'm fine, of course. Sure, losing to Serena all the time is frustrating, but it's nothing compared to . . . to the overall happiness I feel being on this journey with you. And the rest of my Pokemon." His voice had softened mid-sentence. Everything about him appears softer now, actually. He's pulled his knees closer to his chest and is curling in on himself.

When he speaks again, his voice is quiet and quick, forcing Greninja to lean in to catch his words. "Did you know that I enjoy the company of Pokemon more than that of humans? I'm not a total outcast because I do have human friends, but there's something so appealing about your life. Pokemon are simple. I don't mean that in a bad way. It's more like you're easier to understand. If someone gives you a smile, you're happy. Your friend left, so you're sad. You won a battle, so you're proud. Everything has a reason with you Pokemon. Everything makes sense. Believe it or not, I've sometimes wished I could _be_ a Pokemon."

A tingly sensation shivers over Greninja's skin. He has often wished to be a human, so that he could gaze at his trainer without feeling stabbed by hopelessness.

"I bet I would be free then. Free from society." Calem pauses. "I shouldn't have thoughts like that in my head. Do you think I'm a freak?"

Before Greninja can realize what's happening, his hand has reached out and touched Calem's face. The action was completely instinctive; he couldn't listen to that vulnerable tone of voice and not want to comfort the person it belonged to. Calem flinched at the sudden touch but now he's still as a statue. He stares at Greninja, who waits in terror for condemnation.

Then Calem closes his eyes.

Greninja has no idea what he's supposed to do now, but he does know what he wants to do. With one nervous motion, he uses his free hand to pull down his tongue-scarf as best he can. He will stop everything if he's asked to, but first he will take the risk. Since his face is pointed, not flat like a human's, he turns his head a little to the side before slowly placing his mouth near Calem's.

Calem emits a low sigh as his lips part against the Pokemon's skin. Astonishment nearly stops Greninja's heart. His body jerks backward. Once again he's met with Calem's indecipherable stare. The boy's eyes are glassy and his face is warm red. Greninja is at a loss for what to make of this unreal situation. He wishes he could ask for instructions. For an interminable amount of time he waits. The two of them, sitting inside a pocket of air warped by anticipation, remain dead still and silent.

Finally Greninja realizes his trainer is never going to move first. So he leans forward and, upon receiving utterly no reaction from Calem, tentatively kisses him again.

It only lasts about a second. This time, Calem is the one to pull away. "Stop," he whispers.

Reluctantly Greninja steps back until he's against the wall.

"We can't do this," Calem mutters. "It isn't right."

That's all he says before picking up Greninja's Poke Ball and recalling him.


	4. Chapter 4

_Even though all the Pokemon protagonists have the same face, Calem and Serena somehow give me the impression of being better-looking than average. I like Greninja's design a lot too (but you probably already guessed that). By the way, in case this wasn't clear before, this story assumes you already know how the whole storyline of X and Y goes. In other words: game spoilers ahead._

**Chapter 4**

Greninja is brought out of his Poke Ball. Immediately he notices the cloying wet warmth of the air, along with the deep darkness of night. Faintly he can make out the muddled form of his trainer standing in front of him. There are no others around.

"Hello," Calem says. "I know it's very late right now, but if you don't mind, I would appreciate it if you walked with me for a bit."

Greninja's first reaction is not elation, but exasperation. When was the last time he and Calem had been alone together? It was that night in the Anistar City Pokemon Center, shortly after a loss to Serena and her Heliolisk. That took place a while ago, and thanks to the hurricane of events that had happened since then, that night felt even more distant than it would have.

At the time, Greninja had thought Calem's sudden display of vulnerability meant that everything was about to change for them. Instead, the opposite happened. Calem went straight back to what he'd been doing before, locking Greninja inside his ball for long stretches of time and never looking at or speaking to him. Greninja, in turn, had sunk back into the pits of despair and confusion.

And now here is Calem, asking casually for something that used to be normal, as if he hadn't put his Pokemon through weeks of suffering. He is ignoring the issue on purpose – he can't possibly be unaware of what he's been doing. Greninja is mad that his emotions are being played with so lightly.

Nevertheless, he puts on a smile and nods. He won't pass up the chance to spend time with Calem.

"Thank you," his trainer says.

Greninja can barely see, even after his eyes adjust to the darkness, so he follows Calem through sound as much as sight. Their footsteps cause squelches and cracks as they trudge through muddy ground and tangled branches and fallen leaves so damp they're practically melted into the earth. Greninja doesn't know where they are or where they're going, but the swampy forest is strangely familiar.

He expects Calem to start talking before long. It's the only reason he would've brought out Greninja alone: because he wanted to say something.

The boy stops walking when they arrive at a small clearing. Seeing this, Greninja stops too. His eyes fall on Calem's back, noticing the lines of his arms and his hands shoved into his jeans' pockets.

"I've been thinking about that time when we defeated Team Flare," Calem says. He doesn't look at Greninja while speaking. "Specifically, I've been thinking about when Serena and I were standing in their headquarters in Geosenge Town, and Lysandre explained his motivations for wanting to unleash the Ultimate Weapon. I disagreed with his methods, but I understood what he was saying. I felt sympathy for him . . . until he mentioned that his plan would also eradicate Pokemon, not just humans. That's the moment when it all turned around and I started hating him. I can somewhat forgive him for giving up on humanity, but I can never forgive him for giving up on Pokemon too. It doesn't matter that he cried while saying that. Crying isn't enough."

He pauses there. Greninja waits to hear more, but no more is said. Seconds tick away into minutes, leaving the Pokemon baffled. Did Calem already say everything he had to say? What was the point of it, then? Greninja turns over Calem's words in his head, trying to figure out what his trainer expects him to do now. Apparently there is a problem concerning Lysandre, but Lysandre is already gone. Nothing more can be done in regard to him.

Suddenly Calem speaks again, this time with a type of softness in his voice that is hard to understand. "I can't imagine this world without Pokemon. I can't imagine this world without you."

He turns around and walks up to Greninja, so close that their feet almost touch. He puts his hand under Greninja's chin and tilts his head up so that their eyes meet. He asks quietly, "Do you still feel the same way you did the last time we were here?"

With a jolt Greninja realizes they are on Route 14. They are in the same clearing where Greninja first disastrously revealed the sordid feelings he had for this human. Peering around Calem's arm, he can see the tree stump where his trainer previously sat.

It doesn't make any sense for them to be here. Right after Team Flare's final defeat, Calem announced his intention to visit the Mega Evolution guru in Shalour City, which is nowhere near their current location. Did he lie about his plans or did he make a gigantic detour? Either way, he's here for a reason.

"Well?" Calem prompts. "Do you still want me?"

Greninja hesitates. He should lie and say no, because the truth will only upset Calem and make him say things like _that's so wrong. _He should lie, but he can't stand to do it, so he resigns himself to criticism and nods.

Nothing in the world could've prepared him for what happens next. Calem leans over and plants a kiss on the top of Greninja's head. The Pokemon freezes, or at least he tries to; he can't stop the shivers that race up his back. Calem kisses him repeatedly, tracing the many ridges of his head with trembling lips. His hands perch lightly on Greninja's body, holding him in a loose embrace – an embrace that Greninja finds himself returning, as his arms wrap around Calem and draw him closer.

The boy's breath is hot on Greninja's skin. "I tried to repress it," Calem whispers, "but I can't anymore. I guess I'm just weak like that."

He pulls Greninja down to the muddy forest floor. This time, Greninja doesn't need to fumble with a zipper because Calem removes his jacket himself. He tears off all his clothes in short order, so swiftly that the action almost feels vicious, and throws them aside in a messy pile. Then he lies down, gazing at his Pokemon with grey eyes full of hunger.

Greninja is paralyzed again. Looking at Calem's naked body, he is awash in awe, but he's also painfully nervous. Never before did he realize how little he actually knows about the human anatomy. He has no idea what to do or where to touch. He reaches for Calem but stops his hand halfway, having become terribly self-conscious.

Calem sits up. "Are you scared?"

Greninja shakes his head. He isn't scared in the way that Calem means.

"I am," Calem says.

He takes Greninja's hand in his own and presses them both on top of each other against his warm chest. Calem's heart is beating just as wildly as Greninja's.

The revelation is electric. All of a sudden Greninja can see it clearly in his mind: Calem lying awake in bed, staring into darkness, spending night after night tormented by the forbidden longings in his heart. Greninja can feel the cumulative ache just as strongly as if he'd experienced it all himself, because he _did _experience it all himself. He has spent endless nights awake in his Poke Ball with Calem heavy on his mind, believing that they were walking divergent paths, when really they were walking toward each other all along. He knows – he just knows – that now their lonely paths have finally crossed for real, and the two of them are right now in the moment that is the start of everything they have so long wished for.

Calem is moving Greninja's hand over his body. He doesn't seem the least bit bothered by the slimy texture of the Pokemon's skin. "Neither of us has done anything like this before," he murmurs. "We'll guide each other through this, okay?"

Greninja's heart is still hammering in his chest, but the sensation is not so petrifying anymore. He leans forward like he's sinking into water and brings his mouth to Calem's. This is always going to be awkward for them, trying to kiss, what with Greninja needing to tilt his head and work around his obstructive tongue. Yet it's a process that he can see himself getting used to.

After some moments Calem breaks the kiss and pushes Greninja onto his back. Then he leans forward and their lips reconnect. Greninja's field of vision is filled up with the boy's face, but he can feel a soft hand caressing him elsewhere on his body. The pleasure is visceral; it's all he can do not to dissolve into a helpless puddle on the ground.

He thinks he should try to surrender to instinct and just _feel_ what is happening. It's essentially the same thing he does in battle, except there is no battle – no situation at all, in fact, other than this one – in which he'd allow himself to be pinned down like this. He wonders if that's a weird analogy to make.

**(Segment Break)**

The entire process was clumsy, but they managed to work it out. Really, the fact that it happened at all was more than enough to put Greninja in a state of bliss. After they've finished, he lies on the forest floor, his breath heavy but his heart as light as air. The old anguish that used to play so heavily in his life is melting away from him now. Pain and longing have become distant.

He doesn't know what he did to earn it, but he has Calem's heart. He has more than he ever could've hoped for in the past.

Calem is lying beside him. The gaze he directs at Greninja is fire incarnate. "Don't tell anyone," he orders. "Not even my other Pokemon."

Greninja nods right before falling asleep with his lover's arm draped over him.


	5. Chapter 5

_Hey there, how's it going? :)_

_(This is a non-rhetorical question. Seriously, how's it going?)_

**Chapter 5**

Greninja stirs awake and opens his eyes. The sky is in transition: lighter than before, but the sun isn't out yet. He estimates that he slept two or three hours. Calem is no longer lying beside him. Greninja rolls his head to the side and spots the boy standing a small distance away. Calem's hair and skin are caked with mud. He's putting his clothes on without concern for soiling them. His clothes are muddy too.

Greninja watches him with fondness, which changes into alarm when Calem suddenly doubles over in a coughing fit. Greninja springs to his feet, rushes over to hold him, and is nearly slapped by an errant arm when Calem jerks away from him. Greninja stumbles backward.

"Sorry," Calem mutters. "That was a reflex reaction. Your skin's kind of cold."

He straightens up and finishes dressing. The jacket he's wearing isn't his usual blue jacket. This one is dark green and old and a little too small. Something he didn't mind getting dirty, apparently. Greninja hadn't noticed it earlier due to the darkness. It fills him with a strange warm liquid feeling to know that Calem thought enough about this night to plan for it.

Calem remarks in a scratchy voice, "Laverre is the nearest," and starts walking. Greninja follows him closely, worried that he might fall over even though his walk seems steady. All the way to Laverre, Calem does not look at or speak to Greninja.

When they reach the outskirts of the city, they see that there are almost no people outside, due to how early in the morning it is. Nevertheless, Calem withdraws Greninja as soon as they're there.

**(Segment Break)**

He dozed off inside his Poke Ball, but is awakened when he's unexpectedly brought out again not long later. Blinking rapidly, he sits up. He's on the floor of a room inside the Laverre Pokemon Center. Across from him, his trainer sits cross-legged on the edge of a prim bed. Calem is cleaned up now; he's taken a shower and changed into soft blue pajamas. His eyes still look hazy, however.

"I need to tell you something," Calem says. He starts another sentence, but his voice breaks on the first syllable. He grimaces, starts talking again, and then stops again. A blush creeps onto his face. Greninja waits for him patiently.

Unable to meet the Pokemon's gaze, Calem stares fixedly at the space beside him. "What happened last night," he finally says, each word as heavy as an anvil, "can never happen again."

Greninja cries out in shock.

"It never should've happened at all," Calem exclaims, and then he's on a roll. He rambles about how he's a fool and an idiot and how he made a terrible mistake that must be buried. For once, Greninja doesn't care that his words are unintelligible to Calem. There's no way he can stay silent through this. Frantic protests rush out of his mouth in a stream, and Calem has to keep raising his voice in order to talk over Greninja.

The argument gets heated, devolving toward senselessness, until Calem abruptly cuts himself off mid-sentence with a muttered curse. Then he reaches for the bedside table, where Greninja's Poke Ball sits. Lightning-quick, Greninja leaps forward and catches Calem's arm, pinning it against the mattress.

"Let me go!" Calem screams. He struggles violently, which doesn't bother Greninja in the least. He's stronger than a sick young human. He could restrain this boy all day. Calem fights and flails but cannot move from where he is. Finally, with a gasp, he gives up and goes limp on the bed. Greninja can't help feeling sorry for him, but he's not about to relinquish his hold – not when so much might depend on him staying out with Calem right now.

Everything is quiet for a bit. Then Calem lifts his head and gives Greninja a look that startles him. Calem is mad as hell, but not in the screaming-and-thrashing way he was moments ago. Now, the fury in his eyes is calm and intensely focused. "Greninja," he says, and even though he is breathless he still sounds menacing. "Listen. I may have shown you a weaker side of me last night, but I am still your master and when I give you an order, you will obey."

The words cut straight into Greninja's heart, which is ridiculous. He knows perfectly well that trainers have no power other than what their Pokemon willingly give them. Their authority is not absolute. True, Greninja usually does whatever Calem asks, but he doesn't _have _to. He never has to . . . but right now every fiber in his being is telling him that he does. Gloomily he lets go of Calem's arm and steps back.

Calem doesn't reach for the Poke Ball. He does not move to recall Greninja because he does not move at all. His eyes are wide with disbelief, which Greninja doesn't understand. Why would a trainer be surprised to find his command being followed? Or maybe what Calem is reacting to is the humiliation painted on his Pokemon's face. At any rate, his voice is much gentler when he speaks again. "Greninja, are you –?"

He's interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Is everything okay in there?" asks a nurse from the other side of the door. "I heard shouting."

"Yes, everything's fine," Calem answers in a forcibly stable tone.

"All right. Remember, you can always come down to the front desk if you need anything."

"I know. Thank you."

Greninja stares at the door as he listens to the nurse's footsteps walk away. When he can no longer hear them, he looks back at Calem. The boy's face is a cold mask. The tenderness he displayed seconds before has vanished. Even so, a part of him must have surrendered to Greninja because he does not try to recall the Pokemon. Instead, he moves under the covers of his bed. "If you really insist on staying out, I'll let you," he says drily. "But you're not going to have much fun just sitting here watching me sleep."

At once Greninja is relieved and grateful and exhausted. He half sits, half falls down and rests his head on the edge of the mattress, close to Calem's arm.

"Away," Calem tells him.

Reluctantly Greninja stands up, walks to the other side of the room, and curls up on the floor.

Calem is eyeing him skeptically. "Are you comfortable resting there?"

He isn't, but he nods anyway. He doesn't want to be withdrawn.

"I'm sorry for getting so angry at you earlier," Calem says softly. "It's not your fault that I'm a freak."

Greninja closes his eyes in disgust. _Freak _is the last word he would've used.

He soon finds that he can't sleep. His head is overrun with words and phrases. They won't leave him alone. They're marching around in confusion, arranging and rearranging for what feels like ages, until they've put themselves in a decent order, forming by far the longest speech he's ever dreamed of. It is a love letter to Calem.

His heart might just sink out of his chest; it's become so heavy. There is so much he can't say. More than ever, he wishes desperately that he could speak in human language.

The ardent words refuse to leave even now. He will never be able to say them, but they compel him to keep them close. He runs over them repeatedly until they're so well-memorized they're practically printed into his soul. This speech is going to stay with him, he's sure. He will wake up years from now and suddenly have it running through his head. It stays with him as time and silence lull him toward sleep.

When he's drifted onto the edge of oblivion, he hears a faraway voice. It sounds like Calem's but it might only be a dream. "Did I ask for too much?" The voice is trembling. It's bitter. "It's just that Mom and Dad have always been so well-respected, you know? I grew up in the shadow of their reputations, feeling certain it was my duty to become extraordinary too. All my life, I wanted so badly to be different. This . . . is not what I meant."


	6. Chapter 6

___Even though the narration often calls Calem "the boy," he's actually a young adult in this story. I don't want to give an exact number for his age because I would prefer to be like the games and keep it ambiguous. However, let me be clear that Calem, in this story, is above the Kalosian age of consent (whatever that is)._

**Chapter 6**

It's happening again.

The imprisonment.

The endless lying around.

The utter lack of any sense for when one interminable day has moved into the next.

Greninja had never thought he could get so sick of his Poke Ball.

He's restless. There's nothing he can do except wait, but what is he waiting for?

Sometimes he hopes Calem will have another lapse in judgment and return to the Pokemon's embrace. However, those daydreams no longer bring Greninja the comfort they once did. Even if it does happen, Calem could change his mind later, say things like _that was all a mistake_ and shut Greninja out again. If Calem is always going to be like that – cycling between long periods of coldness, interspersed with only the briefest moments of affection – then Greninja sees no reason why he should stick around and suffer through it.

For the first time in his life, he contemplates running away. He isn't in his Poke Ball every waking instant. Usually during mealtimes or training sessions he is allowed outside, obviously for no purpose other than to ward off suspicion from Calem's other Pokemon. It would be strange if their water-type teammate abruptly disappeared from all gatherings. Maybe, the next time Greninja is let outside, he can pick a direction and run. He won't think about where he's going. He'll just run and run, deep into the wild and far away from humanity. He will run until he has left Calem and his teammates and his whole past behind. He isn't sure if Calem will even try to stop him.

Maybe he doesn't even need to wait to be let out again. Maybe, if he attacked the inside of his Poke Ball, he could break out right now and sneak away without causing a scene. He strongly doubts it's possible for captured Pokemon to break out of their containers, but then, he's never tried in the past.

He will not try in the future, either. He will not try now. Even though he's preoccupied with thoughts about it, he knows he will never actually run away. He's too much in love with his trainer, too attached to his teammates, and anyway he'd be lousy at fending for himself in the wild. He hasn't been wild a day in his life. And so he bides his time, stuck where he is, waiting for nothing in particular.

Despite how much he's in his Poke Ball, he notices that Calem is spending an oddly long time in Laverre. Even after the boy recovers from his short-lived sickness, he shows no inclination toward leaving. Greninja has no idea why I-must-always-be-moving Calem would suddenly stop in one town for so long.

**(Segment Break)**

Greninja feels an unusual force strike him right before he's pulled out of his ball. He stands up and glances around, but Calem is nowhere in sight. There is no one else in the room, except for –

"Meowstic?" Greninja gasps.

The smaller Pokemon is standing on the edge of the bed, right next to the nightstand where Greninja's Poke Ball was a second before. Now, though, the red-and-white capsule is lying open on the floor.

Even though it's glaringly obvious, Greninja can't help exclaiming, "How did you get my Poke Ball open?"

Meowstic stares at Greninja as if he's brain-damaged. "It wasn't difficult. I just pushed it off the table."

"I just – I mean – well . . ." He groans. "Sorry. I've been spending so much time in there, sometimes I forget it even _can_ open. Where's Calem, by the way?"

"Somewhere in town. I was with him earlier, but I ran away from him to come here –"

"You ran from him?" Greninja echoes. "How could you do that? You'll make him worry about you –"

"Don't chastise me," Meowstic huffs, hopping off the bed so he can stand on the floor. "I only did it because I was desperate to talk to you alone, without Absol or Flareon around. I'm worried about you, okay? I've hardly seen you at all lately, and when I have, you look tired and unwell. Are you ill?"

The inquiry disturbs Greninja. Up until now, he thought he'd been doing a good job of appearing normal to his teammates. Since this is apparently not the case, he answers, "Yes, I'm ill." Not only is it the most convenient excuse for his melancholy, it's also not a complete lie. He's been heartsick for a long time.

"I thought so," Meowstic remarks. "Is that why we've been in this Pokemon Center for so long? Oh, you must be very sick, considering how long we've been here. What exactly is wrong with you?"

"I . . . I don't know."

"You mean the nurses only said 'you're sick' and nothing more? That's odd."

"The nurses haven't looked at me . . . because Calem doesn't know I'm sick. He hasn't asked them to look at me."

"What? Why on Earth haven't you told him?"

"How could I?" Greninja exclaims, irritated. "He can't understand a word that we Pokemon say."

Meowstic scowls. He's annoyed too. "There are ways to communicate besides using words. If you really think our trainer knows nothing about us, even after all the time we've spent with him, you're insulting him."

"Look, I'm not saying he's stupid or that he doesn't pay attention to us. I'm saying that when a Pokemon speaks, we hear words but a human like him can only hear noise. It's not his fault; it's just the way it is. And I know there are people out there who claim that once you become really close to someone, you can practically read their mind or whatever, but if that's true, then I guess . . ." It's honestly painful for him to say it, but there's no denying it. "I guess I don't know Calem that well. I don't know how to talk to him. If I did, I would know why he's been dawdling in this town for so long. Seriously, what is he even doing here every day?"

Meowstic is still wearing that disapproving frown, but he answers Greninja's question anyway. "He's looking for someone."

"What?"

"I said he's looking for –"

"I heard you. Who is he looking for?"

"No one specific . . . or maybe someone very specific. He goes out every day and hangs around places like stores and cafes and the Pokemon fan club – places that a lot of humans visit, basically."

"How do you know he's been doing this? Have you been with him?"

"Yeah, he often brings me along as a prop. He says girls like it when he has a cute Pokemon around."

Greninja swiftly conceals his ensuing heart attack. So this is what Calem is doing. Despite the block of anxiety that has materialized in his throat, he manages to speak (in a remarkably level tone, if he does say so himself). "Calem's been talking with girls?"

"Mostly girls," Meowstic comments with a shrug, "but some boys too. Apparently he goes both ways. Who would've thought?"

Greninja thinks to himself: _You have no idea how many ways he goes._

Out loud he asks, "Has Calem talked to any particular person more than once?"

"I don't know. I haven't paid attention. Besides, most humans look the same to me."

"Is he only talking to them or is he also doing things like kissing?"

Meowstic actually takes a step back, his impossibly large green eyes having gotten even wider with shock and repulsion. "Uh . . . if he has, I haven't seen it. W-why would you even ask such a question? That's kind of gross of you, Greninja."

Greninja realizes he's pushed too far and needs to backtrack. He tells Meowstic that yes, he agrees, the humans' custom of kissing is totally gross and he doesn't know why he even thought of it. After he's said that enough and established himself as having the mind of a perfectly ordinary Pokemon, he cautiously adds, "I don't get why Calem is doing this _now_, though. I thought he had his sights on other things, like being a Pokemon Master."

"I thought so too. I don't know what –"

Meowstic is interrupted by the sound of familiar footsteps coming from down the hall. Seconds later, Calem steps in through the doorway. "Are you here, Meowstic?" Then he spots Meowstic standing with Greninja in the room.

It's the first time Greninja has ever seen Calem rendered speechless.

To his credit, he recovers quickly. First he works his face back into an impressively non-panicked expression. "Ah, there you are. You really shouldn't run off like that, Meowstic." Then he tries to explain his earlier shock by remarking, "I'm surprised you managed to open Greninja's Poke Ball. Then again, I suppose it isn't hard to figure out."

He walks over to pick up Greninja's Poke ball from the floor. At the same time, he takes Meowstic's out of his pocket. "Anyway, it's late now. How about we say good night? Sleep well." He recalls them both.

Greninja is not surprised in the least when, mere seconds later, he's brought out again. It's only him – no Meowstic. The door of the room is shut.

Calem radiates tension. "Did you tell Meowstic about us?" He stands intrusively near to Greninja, who notices the faint scent of a stranger's perfume.

For a second Greninja considers nodding just to see the ensuing freak-out, but he can't bring himself to lie to Calem, so he shakes his head.

"Is that right? You'd better not be lying to me," his trainer snaps.

Suddenly Calem gasps and jolts backward. At first Greninja doesn't know why, but then he notices that his own body has lunged forward with one arm outstretched. His insides seize up with horror at the realization that he just came _this _close to slapping the boy he loves.

They stay frozen for a few moments before recovering and returning to normal standing positions. Actually, it's not exactly normal, because Calem doesn't usually clutch his own arms and curl in on himself like he's doing now. "I'm sorry," he says softly. "I know you've been sad lately. As your trainer, I should help you. I . . . I could take you to places, you know. Places where a lot of Pokemon are. You could find someone."

All at once Greninja's anger returns and a growl rips from his throat. He never knew he could even make such a sound.

Calem sighs. "I can't be with you, okay? A human can't be with a Pokemon. It's immoral."

Greninja may be sick of his Poke Ball, but right now he's even sicker of Calem – yet another thing he never before imagined possible. He turns away, planning to pick his Poke Ball off the nightstand so he can ask to be recalled, but he pauses when his eyes land on the bed. He wonders if Calem has brought any humans to it.

Jealousy burns him hotter than a fire-type attack. He's furious with Calem, and yet he doesn't want to love anyone else. His eyes are transfixed by the sight of the bed and his brain is conjuring memories of what he did with Calem on the forest floor of Route 14.

It is terribly strange, being filled with disdain and desire at the same time. The emotions are both so strong, and so conflicted, they're making Greninja sick.

He can't stand to be out anymore. He takes his Poke Ball off the nightstand and holds it out to Calem.

Calem looks so hurt that it almost ruins Greninja's resolve, but by sheer force of will he manages to remain angry-looking until he's withdrawn.

Once inside, he falls to pieces.


	7. Chapter 7

_Chespin, Fennekin, Froakie . . . I started with Fennekin when I played X, but I love all three of them. I love Kalos in general, really._

**Chapter 7**

Greninja is lying down half-asleep, in the middle of a daydream when he's sent out of his Poke Ball. He grumbles a little. The carpet, which seems to follow him to every Pokemon Center, is uncomfortable as usual.

From a distance comes Calem's surprised voice. "Were you still sleeping?"

He wasn't completely, but he could've been. It's not like he can keep track of night and day when he's locked in his Poke Ball. It's been a while since he was last out – he doesn't know exactly how long. He cracks open his eyes. The dim, orange lighting of the room makes him guess it's currently late afternoon.

It's nice to see Calem again. Greninja isn't mad at him anymore. The monotony of the past several days (or however long it's been) had dissipated his anger until all that was left was the plain sadness of missing someone.

Still, it doesn't excite him to find that they're alone. There's a reason Calem is sitting on the other side of the room, as far away from his Pokemon as possible. Greninja sits up and prepares to hear a monologue, because he's certain that's what his trainer brought him out for.

Sure enough, Calem shortly begins talking: "So . . . I'm not sure if you noticed, but we're actually still in Laverre City right now."

Greninja did indeed notice.

"I didn't plan to stay so long. I told myself I was only going to rest here until I'd gotten my act together. How ridiculous of me to think it could be that easy . . . Well, anyway, I wanted to tell you that I just got a Holo Clip from Serena. She just won her eighth badge from the Snowbelle gym and is heading to the Pokemon League. I'm happy for her, of course, but I have to admit I'm envious too. So I asked her what makes her so strong, and you know what she told me? She said it's because she feels _connected _with her Pokemon. I ended up saying that I'm _connected_ with mine as well. We used the same words, but only I knew we were talking about different things."

Calem started out fine, but stuttered on the word _connected_ and only got worse from there. By the end, he was so choked by embarrassment that he could barely get out his words. He falls into mortified silence, breathing to calm himself.

Greninja is suddenly distracted by an errant thought about how warm Calem's face would feel right now, painted red by that brilliant blush. He shoves the thought out of his brain; it's superfluous.

Calem's voice is better, but still not totally steady, when he resumes. "This secret . . . it's enough to make anyone want to give up on everything. Will I ever again speak to another human without being tortured by it? Greninja, I've met with and talked to and thrown myself at so many different people in these past few weeks. Some of them were nice, others were not, but none of them . . . none of them could distract me from you. I can't stop thinking about you." He puts his head in his hands and groans like something is burning him. "I'm . . . so . . . scared. I am so afraid of what would happen if anyone found out what we did."

He pauses for a bit before sliding his hands off his face and asking, "How are you doing?"

The question, as well as Calem's abrupt change of tone, catches Greninja off-guard. A second ago, he'd figured his only job was to listen, which was why he'd thus far resisted the impulse to step forward and comfort his distressed trainer. Now he's confounded by this open-ended – and therefore impossible to answer – question. He falls into his usual habit of hanging back and waiting for Calem to start again.

Calem sighs. "You're always silent."

Greninja shrugs helplessly.

"I wish I could know what you're thinking," Calem says. "I wish I knew what you thought of it when I said I was a freak. Do you remember that? I called myself a freak because I fell in love with someone outside my species, but I've since realized that in doing so, I indirectly called _you_ a freak as well. I don't want to think that way about you, but it's true, isn't it? We're both demented. If word ever gets out about us, I'll be shunned by humans, and you . . . well, actually, I don't know how Pokemon feel about this sort of thing. Have I made you an outcast among your kind as well?"

Again Greninja doesn't answer, but now it's for a different reason. His mind is reeling. That was the first time he heard Calem say the word "love."

Calem notices the change in him. Apparently Greninja looks just as dazed as he feels. "Are you okay?" the trainer asks, concerned. He doesn't wait for a reply – he probably wouldn't get one anyway – before he gets up, crosses the room, and then falls back onto his knees to put himself on eye level with his slumped Pokemon.

It sounds like a waterfall is crashing somewhere; Greninja's heart is pounding so much. Calem asked _are you okay_ but he's not searching for the answer to that question. His eyes are staring into Greninja's with searing intensity. Those eyes are asking another question altogether, one that isn't asked out loud but Greninja knows it anyway. He feels the magnetic energy flowing through the tiny space between their bodies and he instinctively knows the true reason Calem brought him out. It wasn't just to make him listen to a monologue after all.

They've stared at each other for an absurdly long time before Calem lowers his gaze to the ground. He laughs nervously. "Greninja, you are . . . too much of a gentleman. D-Don't just sit there and wait for me. I don't have the nerve to act first."

Greninja frowns at this. Really, what Calem is saying is that he doesn't want to take any responsibility for what they're about to do. He wants to avoid making the first move so that he can later delude himself into thinking he was dragged into the act unwillingly by his Pokemon. As much as Greninja hates disobeying an order, there's no way he can allow his trainer to hold such a twisted mindset. If Calem really wants them to be together, he should be able to admit it, if only for a moment.

Trying to be gentle but firm, Greninja takes Calem's face in his hands and tilts it so their eyes meet again. The boy's skin really is warm – comforting, even. It almost makes Greninja forget what he's doing, but he does remember to let go. He sits back, returns his palms to the floor and continues to wait. His body is achingly impatient to begin and it's difficult for him to keep still, but the first move absolutely cannot be his.

Calem holds his gaze, though he seems tempted to break it. He's blushing and wincing and then he starts taking deep trembling breaths that make him sound like he's losing control – but he's not. He is so slow and careful when he finally wraps an arm around Greninja and pulls him close. Greninja returns the embrace and presses himself against Calem, pleased by the solidness of him. It's so much better than his intangible daydreams.

"We're going to hell for this," Calem mutters. His tone is dull and unconvincing.

In the next moment his fevered lips are brushing Greninja's face. Much like their first time at Route 14, he kisses every line and ridge of the Pokemon's head. Greninja soon tries to copy him; his kissing is sloppy as always but made up for with sheer enthusiasm. As fumbling hands roam among them, Greninja finds himself being lifted off the floor and then cradled against a body of warmth. Calem carries him over to the bed and lays him down on the mattress. After hastily undressing, Calem joins Greninja on the bed and they forget about everything else in the world.

**(Segment Break)**

They're tangled up in each other and in the sheets that they've made a mess of. Normally it would bother Greninja to be encased in such stifling heat, but not this time. He may never want to move again. He's so content where he is right now. For a long time, the only sound in the room is their joined breathing.

Eventually, Calem makes a barely audible whisper: "Do you love me?"

Greninja nods.

"Even after all the grief I've put you through?"

Again he nods.

"I don't understand it," Calem says softly.

Greninja doesn't fully comprehend it either, but it's clear that he cannot hold a grudge when forgiveness is so much easier.

He knows Calem could turn around tomorrow and insist what they did together was an unrepeatable mistake. The possibility saddens him, but not enough to keep him away. There is no fighting his feelings. He will endure the pain when it arrives and snatch all the moments of pleasure he can get in the meantime.

Calem closes his eyes. Thinking that they're going to sleep, Greninja does the same. But then, Calem breaks the silence one more time to whisper the words that fill Greninja with a rush of hope.

"I love you too."


	8. Chapter 8

_I know Calem should be heading to Victory Road right now to battle Serena, but I omitted that because it didn't fit into this story. Instead, he's continuing on his way to Shalour._

**Chapter 8**

Once Calem resumed his long-neglected trip to Shalour City, he made no more detours. Every day was devoted to covering as much ground as possible. He worried that if he ever again got stuck anywhere like he did at Laverre, he'd lose sight of what he really wanted to do: travel to Shalour, meet with the Mega Evolution guru, and train with him in hopes of getting closer to becoming a Pokemon Master.

Calem really did seem like a normal Pokemon trainer during the day. Nighttime, however, was variable. He traveled in the day without knowing where he would end up by nightfall. Sometimes he had to set up camp in the middle of the wilderness, but other times he happened to end the day in a town or city. In the latter case, he would rent a room in the local Pokemon Center. Once settled in there with the door firmly locked, he would call out Greninja and bring him to bed.

Greninja approached each session warily because he didn't know how long they would last. He and Calem had not told anyone about their relationship, nor will they ever. At any time, Calem could decide that the whole thing was too much to keep secret and thus shut himself off from Greninja again. Greninja kept warning himself about that . . . but when the two of them lay together, tired and spent and wrapped up in each other, sometimes Calem would murmur, "I love you." And Greninja couldn't stop himself from being hopeful whenever he heard that.

Calem always spoke those words very quietly. Everything he said while they were in bed together was said quietly. He probably wished he could completely avoid talking, but that wasn't feasible. Nothing ever went perfectly for them, with their radically different bodies, and they often found themselves at a loss for what to do. As awkward as it was sometimes, they needed to guide each other.

Greninja had thought the process would get easier with repetition – and it did, to a degree – but somehow they managed to keep discovering new things to confuse them. He's confused right now, in fact, because Calem has brought him out into another generic Pokemon Center room, but his request tonight is different from what it usually is.

"Greninja?" Calem says. "Did you hear me?"

He nods.

"I hope you aren't too disappointed."

He shakes his head. Sometimes he feels like his head might snap off his neck from how much he moves it while communicating with Calem, but it's not like he has any other way to indicate yes or no.

"I'm glad. I know it's kind of different for us to go straight to sleep, you know, without doing anything before it, so I'm glad you're okay with it." He's babbling a little. Even though Calem's making such an innocent request, he can't help being shy.

Greninja climbs onto the bed. Instead of immediately joining him, Calem just watches him. "Are you . . . not going to sleep under the covers, Greninja?"

No, he's not. The room is warm enough as is. There's no need for him to cocoon himself, as humans so strangely like to do while sleeping.

The boy is picking at the sleeve of his pajama shirt. He still seems uneasy. Greninja has a feeling that Calem was planning to ask a different question before hastily switching to the one he actually asked. But then Calem shuts off the lights and gets into bed. Whatever he was going to say, he let it go.

They lie down side-by-side on the bed, with Greninja lying on top of the blanket while Calem's nestled under it. Greninja has had his eyes closed for quite a long time before realizing that he is once again facing his most common opponent - the inability to sleep. He's preoccupied with his trainer's proximity. He can't help imagining what Calem must look like now, sleeping softly, his face lit by moonlight shimmering in from the window.

He really wants to look at him. He opens his eyes – and finds Calem staring right back at him.

They're both startled. Then Calem pulls off a small smile. "I guess we were thinking the same thing. Well, since you're not sleeping, is it okay if I tell you something?"

Greninja nods.

"I asked to do this because I want you to know that I'm not, uh, just using you for sex, you know?" He winces a little. "I know I haven't always been the kindest to you, but I really mean it when I say I love you. And I think being in love means you're always happy to be with the one you love, no matter what you're doing together."

His tone is subdued. Even though he's claimed to have accepted his feelings, he's still embarrassed about being in love with a Pokemon. That's what Greninja strongly suspects.

"You look like you have a lot on your mind," Calem remarks. "It's times like this that I really wish I could know what you're thinking. Was I wrong back when I said that Pokemon are simple?"

Greninja shakes his head.

"Are you sure? There must be something incredibly complex going on inside your head to make you go against nature and fall for a human."

The implications of that statement annoy Greninja. He doesn't think his love for Calem is against nature. He thinks it's the most natural feeling in the world.

Noticing how the Pokemon's eyes have narrowed, Calem says, "What's wrong?" As usual, Greninja doesn't bother answering, though he's tempted to release a groan. He's tired of being asked to speak by someone who knows he can't.

And then, right in front of Greninja's eyes, Calem's face changes. He's stopped looking like a lover. There is a hardening in his eyes and in the line of his mouth that gives him the appearance of his daytime self, that of a stern trainer. Greninja is familiar with this face – it used to be the only one he knew – but he never would've expected to see it on a boy who's lying next to him in bed, and who was whispering to him in such an intimate way just a few moments before.

"Why are you so unwilling to say a word to me?" the trainer questions.

The Pokemon remains silent.

"You're always like this now. It drives me crazy. Remember when you were a Froakie and you still talked to me? As time went on, you started saying less and less. You rarely made a sound in front of me by the time you fully evolved. I was afraid you might've had an illness that was dissolving your vocal cords, but that couldn't be. You were fine talking to other Pokemon. When I realized the truth . . ." He breaks off, suddenly vulnerable again, and starts another sentence in a much gloomier tone. "You think there's no point in talking to me, but you're wrong about that. Even if I can't understand your words, I think I could learn to understand _you._ If nothing else, I like the sound of your voice. I miss it."

Greninja is floored. He never knew Calem felt that way – although it was actually pretty obvious, now that he thinks about it. Why would his trainer continuously ask him to speak, unless it meant something to him?

A word slips from Greninja's lips: "Calem," he says, but then he stops, hesitating.

It's too late to take it back, though. Calem's eyes have lit up. He's expecting to hear more. He hasn't looked this hopeful in forever. It's so adorable, Greninja feels himself twisting up in knots. He can't bear to disappoint this boy, despite his own reservations.

He's not sure what to say. The first thing to come to mind is that love letter – the one he wrote in his head while lying on the floor of Laverre City's Pokemon Center. Reluctance grips him. He feels like he should save that speech for a better occasion and say something else. But then, what difference does it make? It doesn't matter if he talks about that or the weather, if he speaks now or later. Calem will never understand a word out of him in any case.

The love letter is swirling around Greninja's head. Not only that, it's editing itself, making additions to reflect all the new things that have happened since its first draft was created. He can't think of anything else to say, so he might as well go for it.

"Calem," he begins. "When I first met you, I was not expecting any of this to happen."

He fell in love so gradually that, by the time he noticed what was going on, he was already in too deep. However, he doesn't want to say "it just somehow happened" and leave it at that. He tries his best to trace the progression of his feelings, starting with the day he and Calem met in Aquacorde Town and a little Froakie was struck by the lovely grey eyes of his brand-new trainer, and moving on from there.

He picks out moments when they triumphed over foes and were joyous, times when they walked together over unfamiliar grounds and were quiet with thought, times when the trainer got too caught up in his ambition and acted harsh but then turned around and showed enough kindness to redeem himself. Greninja describes the memories in as much as detail as he can remember – which actually isn't much, because he's not as good at recalling exact details as he is at recalling feelings and sensations.

Right from the start of their acquaintance, he was always aware of his attachment to Calem, and how it continued to grow inside him like a flame. At first he thought it was the usual deepening that a trainer-Pokemon bond experiences over time. Later, however, as their journey went on, it slowly dawned on him that it isn't normal for a Pokemon to fantasize about the texture of his trainer's skin, the taste of a human mouth or the heat of a warm-blooded body.

How did the Pokemon feel when he realized he was in love with his trainer? Actually, he didn't feel nearly as tortured as Calem might expect. He was surprised and maybe a bit frightened, but mostly . . . happy. Yes, happy, believe it or not, because being in love is a wonderful feeling, even if it's considered taboo by both Pokemon and human society – the latter especially.

To tell the truth, that part of it had never bothered Greninja too much. He's a Pokemon born and raised among humans. As far as he's concerned, he doesn't fully belong in either the Pokemon or the human world. He doesn't care what either thinks. It's Calem that he worries about, Calem and his tormented state of mind.

The thing about Calem is that he's passionate and temperamental and very emotional overall, but he doesn't want to be. He'd rather think of himself as a cool-headed guy, the kind who can stay calm in any situation. So much of his energy is spent on trying to be someone he's not. It isn't healthy, and anyway he hasn't been successful with it. There's an air of nervousness constantly around him when he's near his Pokemon lover. Even when they're having sex, Greninja gets the sense that Calem can't truly relax. He always seems to be trying very hard not to think too much about what they're doing.

Greninja doesn't want Calem to keep freaking out over them being together, but he doesn't want him to suppress his heart either. They may have to hide their emotions from the rest of the world, but when it's just the two of them alone, they should be at ease.

"That's what I hope for, more than anything else, that you can someday come to terms with how you feel and be happy with it." The silence is oddly weighty after Greninja finishes speaking. He just talked more than he has in ages, yet he feels like it's not enough. Then it hits him that of course it's not enough. His one audience member cannot have comprehended a word he just said. Although, judging by the soft smile on Calem's face, _something_ about the Pokemon's speech must have reached him.

"Anything else?" Calem asks.

Greninja almost shakes his head before deciding to instead say, "No."

"Well, Greninja, I admit that I did not understand anything you just said, but I'm going to take a guess. I wasn't wrong when I said Pokemon have simple minds. Your falling for me isn't really so complex. You aren't distracted by all the random things humans consider when they search for a mate – things like my gender or race or family or class or even what species I am. All you know is that you like me and that's enough for you."

That's not what Greninja said, but he nods anyway because Calem's guess is nice too.

"That's a good way of thinking," Calem says. "I wish I could think the same way as you."

"You already are," Greninja tells him. "That's why you're in bed with me now."

"I really love you, you know." Calem reaches out and takes Greninja's hand in his own.

Suddenly his smile fades. The lights in his eyes go out. He flattens his hand against Greninja's, pressing their palms together, and moves their hands up to the moonlight. The two of them stare at the contrast between a slimy blue webbed hand and a warm five-fingered human one.

Calem whispers: "Each day that I'm with you, I retreat farther from the human world, but I know I'll never get far enough."


	9. Chapter 9

_Before starting work on this story, I did some research on frogs to help me write Greninja. It was surprisingly difficult to try to take all the information I got and incorporate it into the character I have in this story. The thing that stumped me the most was reading about frog mating and trying to figure out how it would all work with a human. Quoth Wikipedia: _"_When frogs mate, the male climbs on the back of the female and wraps his fore limbs round her body, either behind the front legs or just in front of the hind legs. This position is called__ amplexus __and may be held for several days."__ Somehow I don't think this is what Calem and Greninja do together . . ._

_Sometimes it's good to be factual, but other times it's better to take artistic license._

**Chapter 9**

Calem reached Shalour City, visited the Tower of Mastery, and met with the Mega Evolution guru in order to ask to become his student. The guru responded to this request by asking to see Calem's team, as he claimed he could tell much about a Pokemon by looking at it. Calem's five Pokemon were thus sent out, and now are standing in a loose semicircle around the guru as he stares intently at each of them in turn.

He seems genuinely deep in thought. Greninja can't imagine why. The expressions of his teammates, which currently range from boredom to patience to idle curiosity, reveal nothing profound. How could a stranger study their souls just by looking at them? Thus, when the guru comes to him, Greninja is unworried about the secrets tucked away in his heart. Sure enough, before long the guru passes him without event and moves on to Altaria.

Greninja notices someone else staring at him. "What?"

"Nothing," Meowstic replies. "I was just thinking you look strangely better than before."

"Thanks," Greninja says, a bit dubiously.

"That was more an observation than a compliment, but since you took it as one, you're welcome. I'm glad you're not ill anymore."

After completing his evaluation, the guru nods in approval. "Your Pokemon are well cared for."

"Thank you," Calem says.

"I'm going to tell you something and I want you to remember it. We humans may call ourselves the masters of Pokemon, but that title is misleading. Pokemon are not our servants. They are our partners and friends. I'm glad to see you share a bond with your Pokemon. You understand that they deserve our utmost respect. Never forget that. The worst thing you can do is force your desires onto them."

Calem maintains his smile, but it's become a little strained.

**(Segment Break)**

As the days go by, it starts happening that Greninja is not often let out of his Poke Ball during the daytime, when Calem is busy training with the guru. This could be coincidental – the guru does seem to favor working with Absol – but Greninja wouldn't be surprised if he found his trainer doing it on purpose. He supposes he should be bothered by this, but he really isn't, because his nights with Calem continue as normal.

Except for one time when they don't. One night, a few weeks after their arrival in Shalour City, Calem brings Greninja out into his room and Greninja instantly knows something is wrong. The boy's eyes are rimmed red from crying.

"I'm sorry," Calem says. His voice is raspy. "I've done something I shouldn't have."

Greninja looks at him for a moment. Then he takes a few steps forward, until he drops to his knees at the base of his trainer's chair. He presses his face into Calem's lap and hugs him by the waist, preparing to take a part of his loved one's pain onto himself.

A warm hand comes to rest on his head.

"It was one of the guru's other students." Calem coughs to clear his throat, but succeeds only in making his voice even scratchier. "She caught me at the end of the day as I was leaving the tower and brought me back in. I'm not sure how this happened, but she got me alone in a room with her. At first we talked about Pokemon and other random things. Later, not so much. She was so forward and I should've been rude and walked away from her but instead I was stupid and –"

He pauses suddenly. "Damn it, I'm dizzy. My . . . mind is blanking out on me. Greninja, I swear I don't even remember how this happened, but somehow I ended up telling her that I've slept with a Pokemon."

Greninja's head snaps up. He gapes at his trainer, so shocked that his head is spinning.

A vivid memory floods his mind – something he remembers from the first night in Shalour after Calem met with the Mega Evolution guru. As per the usual routine, Calem rented a room to stay in and brought out Greninja, but that time he broke his habitual silence by speaking right away.

"Well," he said flatly, "shall I now force my desires onto you?"

"It isn't 'force' if you're asking me and I agree," Greninja replied.

Calem grimaced and sat on the bed. He didn't seem in the mood to do anything else on it. "That got to me. I didn't want it to get to me, but it did. I just have a terrible feeling that someday a building we visit will catch fire in the night, and the staff will break down all the doors to save everyone, and in the process they'll discover us sleeping in bed together. Something or someone is going to catch us eventually."

"You worry too much," the Pokemon told him.

Now, though, as it turns out, Calem himself is the "someone" and Greninja is the one who worries too little.

"I didn't say it was you," the boy continues, "and I didn't tell her how often. I said 'I've had sex with a Pokemon' in those exact words and that's all I said on the matter. But that was already way too much." He sounds so very tired. "I don't know what came over me. Has the pressure of keeping this secret finally gotten to me? Or maybe I'm just an idiot. I don't know. I really don't, but that part's not important. What's important is that she called me a freak and a monster and she threatened to report me to the police for Pokemon abuse."

The words hang in the air. They're chilling even though Greninja doesn't know exactly what they mean. Despite being raised by humans, he has only the vaguest concept of their system of laws.

Calem apparently senses his ignorance and seems a bit surprised. "Were you not aware that I technically commit a felony every time I sleep with you? Our relationship isn't something that others would only frown upon. It's actually illegal, at least for me. Pokemon aren't legally considered able to give consent."

"Why not? Most of us are capable of making that kind of decision."

Instead of answering, Calem goes on with what he was saying. "Believe it or not, I actually tried to argue with her on that point. She told me I took advantage of someone helpless, so I said, 'I swear the Pokemon agreed to it,' and she replied, 'It didn't understand what it was agreeing to!'"

"Yes I did!" Greninja cries. The idea that someone out there has such a skewered view of Calem infuriates him. Yes, Calem can be mean sometimes, but he's never abused anyone like he's abused himself.

"Keep your voice down," Calem says softly. "And stand up."

Puzzled, he stands. Calem remains seated, so now he's the one looking up at Greninja's face. The boy's grey eyes shine with a sort of fanatical emotion, intense and searching, and it somehow feels more intimate than any act either of them has ever done before.

"Yes, she was wrong, wasn't she?" Calem's voice is so quiet and quivery, it sounds like a ghost's. "You understand more than you've been given credit for."

"Yes, of course." He stops himself from saying more, because he doesn't want to sound snappish, but he was briefly tempted to add: _Did you seriously believe her for even a second? You should know better. You know I have not been lying there mindlessly all the times I was with you._

Calem turns his head down and sighs wearily. "I can't tell you how scared I was back there. When she said she would report me, I felt sure it was the end of us. I sobbed hysterically. I threw myself on the floor and begged forgiveness. It rattled her enough that she took pity on me. She agreed to keep what I told her a secret, as long as I deeply regretted my crime and promised to never repeat it. I told her that I did. I didn't want to argue anymore. I just wanted to appease her so I could get out of there. I had to lie to her. If she turned me in – if anyone ever does – I could be in jail for the rest of my life. I had to tell her what she wanted to hear. I _had _to, but I'm sorry anyway. The time I've had with you means the world to me, and when I told her it meant nothing, I felt like I truly was a monster."

Greninja stares at him, heart thumping with concern. The lies Calem told that girl are a non-issue to him. He understands why they were necessary. What worries him is the thought of his trainer imprisoned. "I'd hate for that to happen," he says.

"Greninja, I love you immensely," Calem says.

"And I you. Listen, if you ever get locked up, I'll stay there with you."

"I'm going to love you my whole life. I don't care if I end up having to pay for it afterwards."

"Wait a minute!" Greninja exclaims, a new thought striking him. "Will they let me stay with you? Will they actually try to separate us?"

"Please don't worry. Nothing's going to happen while we're alive. I will never tell anyone about us ever again and I'm certain I have that one girl safely silenced."

Calem has no idea what his Pokemon is saying. He's only guessing. But there's nothing that can be done about that. Greninja sighs in resignation. "Well, if they do try to separate us, I'll fight everyone until we're together."

Calem leans back in his chair and squeezes his eyes shut. After this spell of lightheadedness has passed, his eyes half-open and he mutters, "To be honest, that was really irresponsible of her to let me go quietly. I mean, I'm glad she did, but what if I really was abusing you? If I was her and I found someone who seemed to be abusing a Pokemon, I'd stop at nothing to get him off the streets and make him incapable of touching one ever again."

If he's talking about a hypothetical person, why does he sound so much like his animosity is directed towards himself? Greninja thinks there was more to that meeting than what his trainer is telling him, things that Calem can't talk about because they involve the crushing of his spirit and are too painful to recall. What other doubts and untruths did that girl impart onto him?

"What would _you _do?" Calem asks suddenly.

"What?"

"You're stronger than me, you know. If I ever do something you don't like, you can beat me up without problem."

"Nothing in the world could make me do that."

"In fact . . ." Calem shoots to his feet like a man possessed and snatches Greninja's Poke Ball from the bedside table. "You're not obligated to do anything, Greninja. Not even to stay with me. You know that, right? If you ever change your mind about me and decide you want to leave, just ask me for your ball, and then place it on the ground like this." He demonstrates. "When I see that, I'll know my time with you is over . . . and I'll release you."

He rehearsed this. It's obvious he rehearsed this speech, along with most of the things he's said tonight, most likely. It's yet another one of his attempts to make himself feel in control.

None of that hastily-done prep work even mattered. He can't stop his voice or his hand from trembling now. There is such vulnerability seeping out from under his lousy facade that Greninja automatically feels the urge the reassure him. Calem stands back up and is about to return the ball to the bedside table, but Greninja holds out his hand, requesting it.

Calem flinches and his whole body shudders. He looks even sicker than before. His eyes flick between the Pokemon and the Poke Ball, dumbfounded, and then his badly shaking hand slowly holds out the red-and-white capsule.

Greninja takes it with both his hands. He doesn't drop it. He presses it affectionately against his heart.

Moments pass in silence. Greninja gazes at his trainer, waiting for a reaction, but Calem's face remains frozen in horror. He's still waiting for Greninja to lower the ball to the ground.

Greninja is hit with embarrassment. He thought he was doing something romantic, but it looks like he's just not capable of that. His message failed to reach its recipient. With a wince, he offers the ball back to Calem.

Perhaps that message isn't doomed after all. Greninja watches as a numb realization slowly works its way onto Calem's expression. He waits and hopes to see it morph into a look of happiness, but Calem turns around before his face changes too much. He returns the Poke Ball to its place. He pauses there for a while, with his back to the Pokemon, and silence reigns until he finally whips around and crashes into Greninja's arms. They fall to their knees on the floor.

Calem is crying. He can't have planned that. He's never cried in front of his Pokemon before. His arms wrap tightly around Greninja and his sobs make his body shudder like a rickety hut in a storm. Greninja can feel the foreign tears falling on his shoulder and running down his back. They burn his skin like acid, but he doesn't pull away.

"I just needed to know," the boy gasps. "I just needed to make sure you're here with me only because you want to be." And he dissolves back into his tears, but somewhere in there he manages to get out a "thank you."

Greninja leans into him and takes comfort in their embrace.


	10. Chapter 10

_I read online that some male frogs sing for their mates and I just could not resist sticking that in somewhere. :)_

_This is the end of the story. Thank you so much for reading. It means the world to me._

**Chapter 10**

Greninja wakes up. He wakes without opening his eyes. He's conscious of the fact that he's been called out of his Poke Ball, but his head is foggy and he doesn't want to move yet.

"Good morning!" Calem's voice says. "Hey, you told me you'd be willing to get up early today."

"I am," Greninja insists, but his statement is ruined by a yawn at the end.

Yesterday Calem said he wanted them to watch the sunrise together. The request had puzzled Greninja, who didn't understand the point of getting up early to witness a glowing yellow circle do the same thing it did every morning. Still, he agreed to come along, because it seemed to mean something to Calem.

They're currently on the balcony that juts out from the top of the Tower of Mastery, a location that allows for an awesome view. Or rather, it _would_ be an awesome view, but when Greninja opens his eyes and sits up, he sees there's a curtain of rain blurring the landscape. It's not quite storming, but there are enough dark clouds in the sky to block all view of the sun.

"Yeah, it turns out we picked a bad day for this," Calem remarks, eyes on the sky. "You can't even hear the bird Pokemon singing this morning. That's a real shame."

There's a long moment of delay before Greninja, without quite knowing what's compelling him to do it, finds his voice bursting out in song. He sings strongly for a few seconds before self-consciousness kicks in and makes him quiet, though it doesn't stop him completely. He's never sung in front of anyone before. He's not sure if Calem can even tell that it's him making these noises, because his singing voice is shrill and sounds very different from the croak he has when speaking normally.

His question is answered almost at once when Calem turns his head to stare at Greninja incredulously. Luckily, it seems like the good kind of incredulity. Looking at him encourages Greninja to keep going with his wordless melody.

By the time he's done, Calem is smiling in a way that makes Greninja feel relieved; it seems his unplanned act was indeed worthwhile. "Impressive. Where did you learn to do that?"

The Pokemon shrugs. He never actually learned to sing. He's simply always had that ability, in the same way he was born knowing how to swim and how to attack. It's a quirk of his species, probably.

"Well, it's a nice song, so thank you very much. I feel wide awake now," Calem says, and Greninja realizes the same is true for himself. "I think I'll take a walk down in the city. Do you want to come with me?"

**(Segment Break)**

Calem holds an umbrella, but Greninja is happily soaked under the rain. He's making loops on the sidewalk, running ahead of Calem, then running back to him before he can get too far away, and then surging ahead again. Normally Greninja would pace himself to match Calem's incredibly slow human feet, but right now he's in too good a mood to be still. The day has just begun, the rain is pouring and the streets are empty. It feels like they have this blue-tinted world all to themselves.

At one point, when Greninja is far ahead of his trainer, he looks back and sees that Calem has stopped. It's not that he _seems_ to have stopped because he's so slow. It's that he actually stopped. He's facing away from his Pokemon, staring into one of the small buildings that line the sidewalk.

Curious, Greninja goes over to Calem's side. The distracting building turns out to be shop. Greninja examines the large front window, where clothes are displayed. Fancy clothes – not regular everyday wear. The two outfits in the window are an inky black suit and a long white dress. Everything else in the store looks more or less the same as the two up front.

He's vaguely aware that these clothes are related to some kind of ritual that's practiced by a lot of humans, but he doesn't know anything exact about them. Since Calem is looking at them, Greninja thinks they might be important, so he wracks his brain trying to figure out what their specific purpose is. There's a sign above the door, but it doesn't help him because he can't read.

Calem suddenly notices Greninja's presence. He flinches with surprise and then his face colors with embarrassment. "I'm sorry," he says, flustered. "Don't get the wrong idea, okay? I wasn't thinking about that. It honestly never even crossed my mind until a moment ago, but it was really silly for me to even notice this store because . . ."

His voice trails off. He pauses for a moment, thinking of what to say. Then he leans down so that his lips hover as close to Greninja's ear as they possibly can without actually touching him. In an almost inaudible whisper, Calem finishes his sentence: ". . . because obviously it can never happen. I don't have to study a law book to know that." There's another short pause. "I mean, I did say I would love you for life, so perhaps we'll hold a ceremony someday, if you agree to it. Of course, we'll be the only ones there and it'll never be official."

He straightens up. The hand that's not holding his umbrella is shoved into his pocket. "Let's go," he says abruptly. "I don't want us to linger here."

His walk is brisk, as if he's actually going somewhere. Greninja follows a few steps behind, his head abuzz with confusion. He has no idea what Calem was just talking about.

Briefly he considers going up to Calem, asking for an explanation, and then watching the boy's face as he struggled to make sense out of the grunts and croaks that his Pokemon produced. This idea is quickly discarded as too depressing. Besides, Greninja realizes that he's already more or less figured it out. Calem was talking about whatever ceremony those fancy clothes are connected to. Without meaning to, he gave Greninja another indication that, despite hatching and then growing up in the care of humans, he still knows too little about them.

Lately he's started worrying about whether that ignorance hampers his ability to make Calem happy. Greninja had never spent a minute of his life in the wild, so if he's missing anything by living with humans, he's blissfully in the dark about it. Calem, however, is definitely and knowingly sacrificing a great deal of normalcy in order to love a Pokemon.

Of course, the unbridgeable gap of difference between the two of them has always been obvious. Greninja used to think he understood it perfectly, or at least sufficiently, until a recent night proved him wrong. He was never hit by the true consequences of what they were getting into, until the night when Calem came back to their room with tired red eyes and a raspy confession of having leaked their secret to a fellow student at the Tower of Mastery.

Greninja remembers holding Calem in his arms for a very long time until the boy's crying did not stop so much as it withered into silence. When he was composed enough, he stumbled to the lamp to shut it off and the room was drenched in darkness. Then he and Greninja found their way to the bed. Not to do anything special. Just to lie there and rest. Under the covers, Calem wouldn't stop shivering. Greninja repeatedly shifted away from him, thinking that his slimy skin was the cause, but Calem kept moving back to be close to him.

After a while, when they'd fallen into the shadowy realm between sleep and wakefulness, Calem spoke. His voice was so rough, it didn't sound like a voice. "Greninja, in a few years my parents are going to wonder why I'm not dating anyone. Ten or fifteen years more and they'll wonder why I'm not marrying anyone. What will we do then?"

Greninja couldn't answer. He could barely conceive tomorrow, let alone that far into the future.

"Maybe . . ." Calem hesitated. "Maybe I'll find somebody who's both presentable and gullible. We'll get married and I'll pretend to love him or her while the whole world thinks we're normal. Meanwhile, I can keep up my relationship with you in secret."

Greninja's fists clenched. His body trembled. He could not physically handle the inferno of rage that had erupted inside him.

He jumped out of bed, ignoring Calem's protests, and parked himself into the farthest corner of the room, his back to Calem. His fury was a blazing fire, engulfing his heart and spreading out from his chest in a rush to burn the rest of his insides.

"I'm sorry," Calem said. He sounded shattered. "That was by far the dumbest and cruelest idea I've ever had. I'm so extremely sorry. I know I can't do that to you or the other person."

Greninja only huffed in response. Every instinct was screaming at him to go back and soothe his companion, his trainer, his lover, but he stayed rooted to the corner. He needed Calem to know he was mad, so that the boy would never again make such an odious suggestion.

Calem sighed. "I guess we'll deal with the problems as they arise."

He refused to sleep until Greninja finally returned to the bed, at which point Calem promptly fell under. Greninja remained awake for a long time afterward, staring into the darkness and thinking. He was unable to stop thinking, despite how desperately he tried to quiet his mind. He listened to the boy's breathing, which wasn't totally steady even in sleep, and felt himself awaken to a host of new worries that he'd hardly noticed before. Even when morning arrived and Calem woke in decent spirits, the worries did not shut off, and they haven't since.

Now, through the pale blue veil of rain, Greninja gazes at the boy walking ahead of him on the sidewalk. Without warning, a tidal wave of fierce love rises inside him. It's as shocking as that blaze of anger on that moody night had been, and just as powerful too. On impulse, Greninja hurries forward and moves in front of Calem, blocking his path and making him stop.

Calem asks, "What is it?" The Pokemon stands up straight and locks eyes with him. Greninja is still thinking of that night, but he's recalling a much earlier part of it now. In his mind's eye he sees the moment after he was asked to stand, the moment when Calem gazed up at him with that expression so desperately inquisitive and deeply intimate. Greninja fills his mind with that memory, wanting so much to make his emotions clear on his face in the same way Calem did back then.

After several seconds of uncomprehending silence, Calem suddenly turns away from Greninja. He walks past him and hurries down the sidewalk.

As Greninja moves to follow, Calem mutters, "Don't stare at me like that while we're in public. I know it looks like we're the only ones outside now, but you can't take chances like that. I'll never let you out again if you're going to get all emotional for no reason."

His tone is reproachful but Greninja can see the blush on his face. The Pokemon feels happier. It was minimal, but he successfully communicated something to Calem.

Perhaps someday they really will be able to understand each other perfectly. They will definitely face countless obstacles until then, and will continue to do so even after that point, but he believes love has the potential to bring them through everything.

END


End file.
